A Bag of Marbles
Author | Joseph Joffo |
---|---|
Original title | Un sac de billes |
Country | France |
Language | French |
Series | D. Carter |
Genre | Autobiographical novel |
Publisher | Guilde du Livre |
Publication date | 1973 |
Media type | Print (Hardback & Paperback) |
Pages | 380 pp |
A Bag of Marbles (
Plot summary
Joseph is an ordinary boy with ordinary interests; he dislikes lessons and enjoys playing marbles with his friends. But in 1941, when Paris is occupied by the Nazis, his childhood comes to an end. Never before having known what it means to be a Jew, Joseph is forced to wear a yellow star. Due to his schoolmate's admiration of the yellow star, he makes his first business transaction with Zérati, a friend from school: his yellow star exchanged for a bag of marbles.
The racism which results from the occupation leaves only one possibility to Joseph and his brother Maurice: they must flee. Their father, who owns a hairdressing salon, advises them what to do when they leave. Despite having been driven from their home because of their Jewish identity, they are told they must never let anyone know that they are Jews.
They are attempting to escape from the grasp of Hitler and his S.S. men as they infiltrate France. They travel through northern France to the de-militiarised zone in the South. They cross the Demarcation Line in the dead of night with the help of another young boy called Raymond. Once into safe France they travel down to Menton via Marseille, where they spend a fantastic day taking in the sea - something they have never seen before. The boys then spend four blissfully safe months in Menton with their brothers, Henri and Albert, before having to leave the town for Nice, where their parents are waiting.
The boys spend the summer in
As the autumn turns to winter, Joseph and Maurice travel north to see their sister, where they learn that it is unsafe for them to stay; so they go to join their brothers in the Alpine resort of Aix-les-Bains. Here Maurice spends the rest of the war working in a bakery, and Joseph works for the owner of the village bookshop - a staunch Petainist. The two brothers also brush up with resistance fighters in the area, when Joseph has to pass on a secret message.
Joseph returns to Paris shortly after peace is announced, in an over-crowded train. Maurice returns by road, although in his typical style he also takes enough cheese to make a very large profit on! They are both re-united with their family in the salon – although sadly not their father, who was murdered in the Auschwitz concentration camp before the end of the war.
Films and graphic novel
A
References
- ^ Bastian Naumann - 2007 Joseph Joffo - Un Sac de Billes: 3638672328 - Seminar paper de l'annee 2005 dans le domaine Etudes des langues romanes - Francais - Littérature, note: 2,0, Christian-Albrechts-Universitat Kiel (Romanisches Seminar), cours: Einfuhrung in die Literaturwissenschaft II, 36 sources ...
- ^ Un sac de billes de Joseph Joffo (Fiche de lecture): Résumé complet 2806219027 Hadrien Seret, lePetitLittéraire.fr, - 2011 "Décryptez Un sac de billes de Joseph Joffo avec l’analyse du PetitLitteraire.fr "